Paul George

Paul George: biography

The Olympic champion Paul George played for the NBA team Indiana Pacers for seven seasons; he transferred to Oklahoma City Thunder in 2017 and became one of the leading players in the Northwest Division, Western Conference. Throughout his career, the talented sportsman has participated in six NBA All-Star matches; he has been included in All-NBA Third Team four times.

Childhood and youth

Paul Clifton Anthony George was born on May 2, 1990, in Palmdale. The family was actively engaged in sports: the future champion’s elder sister played for the Pepperdine university team; the elder sister was a promising volleyball player at CSU-San Bernardino.

There is no wonder that George followed the family tradition; as a child, he used to spend a lot of time in a park, practicing with a ball. The boy supported the Los Angeles Lakers and felt awed with its star, Kobe Bryant.

George joined a basketball team when he was a Knight High school student. As a second-year university student, the young man debuted in the university league; he was the youngest participant. The talented youth competed at AAU tournaments and attracted agents of leading basketball clubs.

In the middle of the season, the coach recognized the player’s potential and gave him the position of the primary attacker. As a result, the school won the Golden League championship, and the sportsman was called the Golden League Most Valuable Player.

By the end of the year, George was number 20 in the top promising athletes according to Rivals.com; he had an oral contract with Santa Clara agents. However, Paul followed his coach’s recommendation to reject the agreement later. Soon, he joined the California State University, Fresno team that played in the Western Conference.

Basketball

When George began his university season, his height reached 6.76 feet (206 cm.), and his weight was 220.46 lbs. (100 kg.). The young forward showed his remarkable talent and helped the team reach the WAC 2009 quarterfinal. Despite Paul’s and other members’ effort, Fresno was not among the 65 clubs selected for NCAA competitions. However, the athlete became the leader of the Western Conference in terms of efficiency; his three-points and blocks brought Paul to the second position in the rating.

In the second season, the American magazine Sports Illustrated called George the most interesting player of the regional championship. The forward confirmed that by the impressive ending of the year: foul shots, rebound, and assistance.

On March 31, 2010, Paul announced he left Fresno to participate in the NBA draft. Draft Express and ESPN.com predicted the young man would be the 12th player assigned to the Memphis Grizzlies, Southwest Division. Contrary to these estimates, George’s position was selected tenth by the Indiana Pacers; the article about the promising sportsman published on Yahoo! Sports contributed to that. On July 1, 2010, the potential forward signed a $3.9 million agreement and could participate in NBA professional matches for two years.

On October 27, 2010, Paul debuted in an NBA Central Division match against San Antonio Spurs; he spent 23 minutes in the playground and scored four points. In 2012, as long as the young man showed his defensive skills in a playoff game, he became one of the two rookies who entered the first teams and were included in the NBA All-Rookie Second Team.

2012 brought Paul 66 games for Pacers; he also participated in the all-star event of the organization and showed his powerful dunks at Slam Dunk contest.

At the beginning of the third season, the defense player Paul George had to replace injured Danny Granger and come to the fore. When the club defeated Cleveland, Philadelphia, and Detroit teams, the press started talking about the new forward; he was called the player of the week and chosen as an NBA All-Star Member participant.

As the regular championship ended, George had 140 steals; his average stats were 17.4 points. For the first time in his career, Paul became the NBA Most Improved Player. After the playoff, he turned into the top best player of Pacers.

In fall 2013, George got the designated player status in the club and earned $90 million for the five-year contract. The season 2013/2014 was brilliant; the sportsman was included in the NBA All-Star; he was among the top five defenders of the championship and playoff series.

In 2014, George was to join the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup team and play in Spain. During the preparation, the athlete injured his right leg: a compound fracture of both bones. Analytics believed the man would skip the season due to the broken leg, but Paul’s desire to play was so powerful that it helped him recover sooner. On April 5, 2015, George came back and participated in the last six games for Indiana.

The next season started with a $10 000 fine for criticizing the referees who worked at the Pacers’ match against Toronto Raptors. Still, it did not prevent the athlete from topping the Eastern Conference rating and stand out in the NBA All-Star game.

In 2016, George joined the USA national team in Rio de Janeiro and won the gold there. Later on, the man played the last season for Indiana to transfer to the Northwest division club Oklahoma City Thunder in July 2017; it was a beneficial trade for the team. The next year, Paul received the free agent status and decided to stay in Oklahoma. On July 6, 2018, George signed the $137 million contract for four years.

Personal life

Today, Paul George lives in Oklahoma and dates a stripper dancer Daniela Rajic; rumors have it the lovers are not married officially.

However, the couple has two friends and sometimes shares the details of their personal life on Instagram.

Present days

When Paul became a famous basketball player, he created the brand basketball shoe line with Nike.

PG, PG1, PG 2, and PG 2.5 “PlayStation” shoes are popular among fashion lovers. In January 2019, the sportsman presented PG 3 NASA inspired by the space exploration ideas.

The athlete’s career is developing successfully: his club wins the NBA Western Conference matches. In winter 2019, it reached the third position in the league table with the minimum difference from the opponents.

Paul George’s net worth is $40 million in 2019.

Titles and achievements

• 2011 – NBA All-Rookie Team member
• 2013 – NBA Most Improved Player
• 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018 – NBA All-Star participant
• 2014 – NBA All-Defensive First Team member
• 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018 – All-NBA Third Team
• 2016 – Olympic champion (in the US national team)